We left early morning for Last Wish. Before my parents even awakened, the two of us were out of there. Scarlett had horses to care for, as did I. Trudy and Shoelaces could wait a little longer today to get their breakfast, but this happened every so often. Sometimes I had to be somewhere, and I didn’t end up getting them fed till eight or even nine. It didn’t make them happy, but they could deal with it every so often.
The drive to Last Wish was about thirty minutes from my house. It was farther north, closer to where Scarlett lived, and was right in the center of the land of hunter and jumper barns. It was surrounded by them, bearing names of some of the barns I saw at the show. Right away when I pulled up by Last Wish, I was impressed. It had an exquisite looking gate in front, but was always open Scarlett told me. There was a big sign over the top, reading Last Wish Stables. There was a drive down the long, grey driveway and the place seemed separated by that road. To the left was three, nicely sized outdoor arenas and a hunt field a little farther off. To the right were big, spacious pastures with lush green grass. And right in front of me- the barn itself.
I pulled into the parking lot up in front, and figured I would drop Scarlett off right then and there. But instead she walked over to the driver’s side where I was and pulled open the door. I wasn’t sure what the girl’s intentions were until she unbuckled my seat belt for me and pulled on my arm once.
“Come on, I want you to come see everything.” She said, head cocked slightly to the side. I hope she didn’t think she had to owe me anything.
“Are you sure?” I asked, wondering if I fit in at the big property.
“Yeah. It’s early. Nobody is around, anyway.” Scarlett told me, and I turned the car off.
Making sure not to thunk the car next to me, I climbed out of the front seat and closed the door behind me. Scarlett had this great big grin on her face as if yesterday didn’t even happen, and I felt a great weight become lifted off of my chest. As long as she was happy, I was happy. She waited for me to come out, facial expressions soft and gentle.
When I was settled, we walked a little ways up into the big doors to the barn. They appeared as slide doors, and my guess was correct when Scarlett walked up to one and opened it. There was a rumbling noise, and fresh barn scent instantly became flying up into my nostrils. Instantly, I was amazed. I could have sworn I was starry eyed as I looked at all of the great, perfectly kept stalls to my right and left. It seemed freshly swept, and ahead I noticed a tack room where tack trunks were perfectly in order and shiny. It was beyond amazing compared to my little six stall barn, and I couldn’t even imagine what it would be like riding somewhere like here.
“Oh my god, Scar, this is amazing.” I said, looking high up at the beams.
“That’s because I clean it.” She teased, prodding me in the ribs. I laughed. “Come on, lets go see Twister.”
I nodded to Scarlett, continuing to glance around. I don’t think I had ever looked all around so much except for that one show in Beloit. I was just so amazed with seeing so many marvelous, quality horses before me. To my left, a big and gorgeous dapple gray. To my right, a dark bay with perfect conformation.
Scarlett and I swung a left, and that was the moment when I realized the stalls were practically a labyrinth with the aisles twisting and turning all around the giant structure. And in the center of it all, out of the corner of my eye I could see an indoor arena. It wasn’t quite as big as the outdoors, but a nice treat nonetheless. As I turned right, I could see one of Leslie’s horses standing with his braids partially taken out. I think it was her hunter, standing in all his glory like he would if he was at an award’s presentation, winning of course.
We made one last turn, and I looked down at my feet. The barn was kept so clean that I hadn’t gotten any dirt onto my shoes at all. They looked just the same as they did when I left the house this morning. I had to give Scarlett some credit, she was one heck of a working student.
“Here’s my boy.” Scarlett suddenly said.
My eyes shot up, realizing I had been spacing out and nearly ran into the girl. She seemed to sense this, because when I raised my head and looked into Scarlett’s eyes her lips curled into a smile and I could see the humor in her eyes. Humor. Just the sigh of it on Scarlett warmed me inside knowing she had improved from yesterday. There was hope. And if everything seemed to go wrong again, then I would do whatever it took to bring her back to light.
“Hey, Twister.” I said, smiling. I put a hand forward, and the bay cautiously sniffed it.
“I’m lessoning on him soon. But of course… if you want to go…” Scarlett began to say, chewing on her bottom lip. “I wont trouble you.”
“Oh, gosh.” I say, perking up. “No. I want to see you on Twister!”
Scarlett laughed a little, tickling Twister under his chin. The bay perked his ears forward, half-heartedly trying to nibble on Scarlett’s hand that teased him. So much did it remind me of the relationship I have with Shoelaces. The playfulness, the teasing- it was all so regular to me.
“If you say so.” Scarlett shrugged, turning to me. “I also want you to meet my trainer.”
Her trainer? I remember what she told me about her. Scarlett’s trainer was named Ann, and, well, she was much more elaborate then her name. From what Scarlett tells me, she was bipolar in a sort. If you were just hanging out at a show dinner, she would be hilarious and kind and everything you want in a person. But getting to horses? Yeah, she changed. If you were watching someone show, Ann would point out every single on of your flaws and say how the rider going was better. And her lessons? Horrendous from what I hear. Strict. She had quite the words on her tongue, and wasn’t afraid to use them.
And so, I felt a tremble go up my spine from now becoming unsure. I wanted to watch Scarlett badly, but I was beyond sure her trainer had seen me go and I was blatantly terrible. I worried for her response at my introduction Scarlett would most likely give.
“Oh…” The words escaped my lips, coming out like a slur. “Well, I guess. Where… Where is Ann now?”
Scarlett began to laugh. “Oh gosh, don’t be nervous. It’ll be fine, she normally isn’t crazy on newbie’s. Follow me.”
Warily, I tracked after Scarlett. I wasn’t sure where we were going or what was possibly going on until we swung a right and I found myself face to face with Ann. I almost gasped for air, but found control on myself and merely took in the situation- and her.
Ann had the stereotypical look of a riding trainer. She had dead-looking straight dirty blonde hair in a high ponytail. To top it off, a white GPA hat was stuck on the top of her head and with her grey eyes, she didn’t make much of an impression. Wrinkles, probably from stress covered her skin. Not even her shirt popped out, for it was a plain grey polo that was about the color of her eyes. But of course, she had on a pair of breeches that were a light tan. Sneakers were stuck to her feet, those a shade of white. Overall, I wasn’t too amazed. She looked like a plain lady. Of course, she was probably much more intricate on the inside.
“Hey Ann.” Scarlett said right away, not missing a note. “This is Stella. She rode the gray at-“
“Oh. Oh.” I could see Ann begin to put a hand to her mouth, but she brought it down. I raised a brow. “I know you. You ride Shoelaces?”
“Yeah.” I said, putting a hand out. “Nice to meet you.”
To make the situation even more awkward, Ann did not take my hand. She glanced at it with her deep, dull gray eyes as if it were a piece of meet. Then, rising back up, she bit her lip and attempted to brighten her expression. Except, she couldn’t. It wasn’t possible.
“Nice to meet you as well.” She finally said. “So what brings you here?”
“Stella drove me here.” Scarlett butted in. Thank goodness for that, because I was beginning to become slightly unnerved by Ann. “I figured she could look around- Actually, Ann, can we talk for a second?”
My head shot in the direction of Scarlett. Why so secretive all of a sudden? Suddenly, my heart began to throb just a little. I couldn’t see why it would be so hard for her to talk right in front of me, since after all, she just poured her heart out to me yesterday anyway.
And just then, Ann nodded and strolled off towards a room that could only appear to be an office. It was brightly lit, and when I took a step to the side I could see the egde of a desk. Scarlett threw a slight little glance in my direction, but it was more than enough. I could see some sort of emotion in her eyes. Soothing? It sure seemed relaxed, but deep down I could sense her almost telling me things would be alright. The trust. And then it was over, for she followed Ann into the room.
I huffed a little, leaning against the wall angrily. So here I was, now alone, and words being kept as a secret from me. What now? What if they were even talking about me? I considered walking back to the stall of Twister and giving the horse some affection, but maybe not. This place was huge, and I could easily lose my way.
So, instead, I turned around and faced the wall instead of plintering myself on it. There was a big whiteboard, words written sloppily in a blue marker. I narrowed my eyes, reading it over. The first name I saw was Leslie. Under her name was six names… and that was when I realized they were the names of horses. She owned three I knew, and even so, she still got more to ride? It didn’t make sense to me. My eyes continued wandering until I found Scarlett’s name on the very end. Under it was one single name. Twister. That instantly set me off. She was a working student, won the equitation every show, so how was she not worthy to get extra rides? It didn’t make sense to me. I guess it was good I gave her the opportunity to ride Shoelaces, then.
The door opening startled me. It had been a minute, maybe two that Scarlett and Ann were talking. Scarlett was wearing some kind of smirk, as if she was hiding something which she probably was. I narrowed my eyes. So what was it? That was when I saw Ann’s face. Cold.
“So Stella…” Her voice wandered. She didn’t sound so pleasant. “Scarlett tells me you train at home.”
“That’s true.” I tell her with a shrug. “In my… backyard.”
“Right.” Ann looked to the side, stomping her foot a few times. “Well, I was wondering if you wanted to use our arena whenever you wanted, since you don’t have that luxury at home. And if you want, I have a lesson slot available on Sundays at eight.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. No doubt, Scarlett was behind this. Of course she was. Scarlett was too nice for her own good. When would I ever stop having to owe her? I would have been nothing right now without the girl. Then again, we needed each other. Bounding back to my senses, my eyes brightened.
“Oh, oh wow!” I exclaimed. Of course I would let my excitement show. “That… That’s an unbelieveable offer. I would love that.”
“Perfect. But on one condition, if you want to use my ring, then I get a free steak at the Hunt Club.” Ann said with a mischevious smile.
“Deal.” I said, chuckling slightly. Since when did I ever laugh?
“Alright. Well, when you want, just trailer your old gray up.” Ann said next. I could do that. “He looks just like The Optimist. It’s crazy.”
“I thought the exact same thing!” Scarlett added in.
Alright, I had what I wanted, but who was The Optimist? But as soon as it started, the conversation finished. Ann waved us off, and Scarlett went to do her chores for an hour before her lesson. I stuck around to watch, and she was perfect as always. But something was tugging at me. It was unexplainable. What was it? But I shook it away. And eventually, smile on my face, I returned home to tell my parents of the news that had come to me.